Shelly Silver’s “Female” Cyber-Apologist Is Actually a Guy Named Bill

September 24, 2012

Embattled Assembly Speaker Shelly Silver has a “female” supporter who incessantly defends him against charges that he approved more than $100,000 in taxpayer money to coverup allegations of sexual misconduct made by multiple women against his old pal/current disgraced Assemblyman Vito Lopez.

The Silver apologist’s name is Sophie Walker, and she vehemently defends the speaker’s handling of all things women in the comment sections of blog posts and newspaper articles online, as well as on her website, goddesssophiewalker.com.

Problem is, Sophie’s a dude — and not only is Sophie a dude, she’s a dude named Bill Eggler, who works in Silver’s Albany office.

In other words, it seems a male Silver staffer is posing as a women online to give the impression that the powerful speaker has the support of women — all as several former female Assembly staffers describe Silver’s Assembly as an “old boys club,” where harassing women is completely acceptable.

The New York Post, which first reported on the “Sophie”/Eggler connection, discovered the link as follows:

In wishing Eggler a happy birthday, Charles Apple of the American
Copy Editors Society recently posted a note saying, “Bill Eggler is a
writer of legislation, speech and whatnot for the speaker of the New
York state Assembly in Albany . . . In addition, Bill writes a
deliciously snarky, naughty and somewhat R-rated science fiction-heavy
blog. Find that blog here and his Facebook page here.”

The links connect readers to goddesssophiawalker.com, The Last Goddess Magazine and a related Facebook page.

Apple last night confirmed to The Post that his pal, Eggler, is the creator of the Sophia Walker blog.

“He’s the guy behind the site,” Apple said. “I’ve known him for 15 years. He’s a science-fiction fan. I am, too.”

Eggler
— as “Sophie” — has left comments on political blogs like the Albany
Times Union’s Capitol Confidential praising Silver, and defending his
decision to payoff two of the several women who have alleged they were
sexually harassed by Lopez.

“This entire affair is nothing more than election-year
scandal-mongering, all of which will fade away after the taxpayers foot
the bill for a costly, perfunctory and pointless investigation that will
find no significant wrongdoing on Silver’s part,” Eggler wrote as “Sophie” in one such post.

Silver’s office says it plans to investigate the matter, as Republicans and Silver-bashers call the deceptive online advocacy of the speaker “inappropriate” at best.